Evergreen Fire/Rescue responded to two structure fires in Evergreen on Sunday.

At the first, a Super Bowl party was evacuated on Swede Gulch Road on Sunday evening after the family called 911 to report their smoke detectors were sounding. One member of the family was able to put out the fire with an extinguisher, said Doug Saba, an Evergreen Fire/Rescue spokesman. The blaze was found in a wall near the chimney, Saba said. Foothills Fire & Rescue also responded to the blaze, which was called in about 7 p.m.

Colorado Parks and Wildlife officials will hold public information sessions in the coming days to "calm some fears" related to recent mountain lion encounters.

Ty Petersburg, Clear Creek wildlife officer at the state agency, will hold public meetings at 6 p.m. Sunday and at 6 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 12, at Evergreen Fire/Rescue's auditorium at Station 2, 1802 Bergen Parkway at the request of residents.

The Indian Hills Fire Protection District received nearly $40,000 in revenue for ambulance transports in 2014 — 164 percent more than projected, according to the latest financial report for the district.

Indian Hills Fire Rescue bills a flat fee of $1,200 for all ambulance transports, plus $17 per mile for the distance from the scene to the hospital, said Karen Nelson, office manager.

For the past few years, Deb Dickinson has been working with other employees at TallGrass Aveda Spa and Salon on the Soldier Box Project, a charitable effort for which she recently received KMGH-TV’s 7Everyday Hero Award.

“It was definitely one of the highlights of my life,” Dickinson said of the honor, presented in December.

Dickinson coordinates the shipment of care packages to men and women serving in the military in Afghanistan during the Christmas holiday and between Mother’s and Father’s days.

Since beginning in his new position as recreation manager for the Evergreen Park and Recreation District last Thursday, Brian Tucker has been getting to know staff and settling into his office at Buchanan Rec Center.

Against a wall in his office is a design for potential improvements to the rec center, for which Tucker expresses enthusiasm. The opportunity to add a turf field, gymnasium and expand the swimming pool at Buchanan is “exciting and great for the district,” he says.

A free ice fishing event for veterans and soldiers this Saturday has been moved to Georgetown Lake from Evergreen Lake after the death of Greg Henika, who fell through the ice Jan. 22 on Evergreen Lake.

The third annual Vets on Ice event and hot dog lunch is hosted by Golden VFW Post 4171, the Just One Day veterans nonprofit group and other veteran organizations. It's scheduled for 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Georgetown Lake. Last year, the event had about 80 participants; this year, organizers expect 180 or more.

Clear Creek residents along Witter Gulch Road and west of Idaho Springs have had run-ins with mountain lions in recent weeks.

The EMERGE homeowners association, located in the Upper Bear Creek region of the county, alerted residents that a mountain lion was spotted in the Old Squaw Pass, Echo Hills, Snyder Mountain and King-Murphy neighborhoods.

The e-mail alert said the lion was attacking dogs and displaying threatening behavior to people. Residents are also sharing photos of a mountain lion roaming their backyards at night.

Whether called Sasquatch, the Missouri monster, skunk ape or forest devil, a large, hairy creature has been sighted repeatedly around Bailey over the years.
Bigfoot lives — at least in the hearts and minds of people who report sightings to Jim Myers, owner of the Bailey Country Store and Sasquatch Outpost.
Myers has organized a loosely knit group of people interested in researching the creature that many believe is a myth. But those who have seen it swear they weren’t dreaming.